3 Ways Follow Ups Can Increase Customer Satisfaction

By Adam Marshall

09/02/2016

Following up with your customers is essential to succeed with customer service and find ways you can improve while also what your company does that works. This is becoming increasingly popular for numerous large business that are customer service oriented with things like surveys. Here's why it's so important.

1. You Know The Bad

It's important for a company to know where it stands with its customers and what you're doing that maybe pushes people away. By sending out surveys after losing touch with a prospect, or closing a case for a customer, you can see how to the customer you handled it.

Listen to what customers say. Determine the consensus and big customers and see what can be done about turning those things around.

2. You Learn The Good

Getting positive feedback from customers is a highlight to surveys. It's also helpful in regards to seeing just how the changes you make to the negative feedback. You have to be able to rate your customer satisfaction consistently. You may have competitors out there who's product is inferior to yours. Exceptional customer service is enough of a reason for most to not go with the #1 product and chose #5, even if it costs more!!

Try to think about it yourself. For example, you have a Verizon level company who offers the best product you can get and it may be worth every penny. The downside is their customer service is horrible. You wait on hold for 10 minutes, you get transferred around, you never get the same person, and half the people on the phone don't seem to know what they are talking about.

Now say you decided enough is enough and you decide to go to a T-Mobile level company. When you do, their product has more downsides. While it's sufficient it's not perfect like the Verizon Level product. However, when you experience any problems or questions you're given a dedicated customer service representative. Maybe you always get someone knowledgable on the issue, friendly, uses terms you understand, and follows up with you. When you suffer loss of use of the product due to an error on their part and felt a discount was appropriate, you're request is granted without hesitation.

Looking at those two examples, who would you rather have? This is just an example on the power of customer service. It does not mean you can't be the biggest and the best. The company with the inferior product and exceptional customer service can continue to build that product. Once they've done so they will not only have the exceptional customer service but the best product out there as well. That's not a company you'd like to go up against!!

3. The Customer Wants You To Care

You may have customers whom you think of as model customers. You hear from them very rarely and they consistently use your product without issue. While this customer may be doing well with your product, how do you know they aren't flirting with other options? Following up with your customers should always be ongoing as long as they're with you.

Customers want to feel special. That is one of the most important things you should know. Once you do know that, you'll find how much easier it is to handle customer service complaints. I'm speaking as a long term customer service employee AND a customer myself! I want to know I'm valued, that my loyalty means something, and you care I'm staying put

Don't think no word from customers is good. It can be, but don't let it go that long. You can't assume it's all because everything's running smoothly. Maybe they haven't called because they are doing a free trial with a competitor. Maybe they didn't call because they just don't get how to use it and put it on the back burner. Check in with customers who don't call.

Have a receptionist call to check in and find out where everyone stands and have cases made for those who say they aren't using it or have questions. Have the sales reps check in on their signed accounts from time to time.

This could even have the potential to generate more revenue. Maybe those customers decide since they've got you on the phone they were thinking of adding some users. If your company has some major updates planned you can use these checking in type follow ups to get feedback on some changes they'd like to see. You can also be using these calls, or even emails (I always recommend personal!!!! NOT automated emails) to promote any specials you may be having or any new features or add ons you've recently added.

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Following up with customers to find your strengths and weaknesses is integral to doing your job of providing your customers with top notch service. Sending requests for feedback or surveys after sales deals or losses and any dealings with the customer and your customer support team will help you build up these strengths and weaken the weaknesses!!

Following up with long term customers periodically who haven't had recent support tickets, will allow you to promote enticing offers and generate some extra business. You will further satisfy your customers need to be special and their loyalty appreciated.

All of this WILL benefit your company in the short term as well as the long term. The key to mastering these concepts and anything else in customer service is to remember you're a customer too! Imagine the items on this list are applied to you as a customer and you'll understand how effective they can be!

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